Menagerie

The History of Exotic Animals in England

Caroline Grigson (UCL Institute of Archaeology, Honorary Professor)

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Hardback

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English

Oxford University Press
04 February 2016

British & Irish history; Social & cultural history; Mathematics & Sciences; History of science; Zoology & animal sciences

Menagerie is the story of the panoply of exotic animals that were brought into Britain from time immemorial until the foundation of the London Zoo - a tale replete with the extravagant, the eccentric, and - on occasion - the downright bizarre.

From Henry III's elephant at the Tower, to George IV's love affair with Britain's first giraffe and Lady Castlereagh's recalcitrant ostriches, Caroline Grigson's tour through the centuries amounts to the first detailed history of exotic animals in Britain. On the way we encounter a host of fascinating and outlandish creatures, including the first peacocks and popinjays, Thomas More's monkey, James I's cassowaries in St James's Park, and Lord Clive's zebra - which refused to mate with a donkey, until the donkey was painted with stripes. But this is not just the story of the animals themselves. It also the story of all those who came into contact with them: the people who owned them, the merchants who bought and sold them, the seamen who carried them to our shores, the naturalists who wrote about them, the artists who painted them, the itinerant showmen who worked with them, the collectors who collected them.

And last but not least, it is about all those who simply came to see and wonder at them, from kings, queens, and nobles to ordinary men, women, and children, often impelled by no more than simple curiosity and a craving for novelty.

By: Caroline Grigson (UCL Institute of Archaeology Honorary Professor)
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 241mm, Width: 162mm, Spine: 26mm
Weight: 1g
ISBN: 9780198714705
ISBN 10: 019871470X
Pages: 400
Publication Date: 04 February 2016
Audience: College/higher education , A / AS level , Further / Higher Education
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Foreword by Juliet Clutton-Brock ; 1. From the Normans to the Tudors ; 2. The Stuarts, 1603-1688 ; 3. George III, c.1760-1811 ; 4. George IV, as Regent and King, 1811-1830 ; 6. William IV, c. 1830-1837 ; Conclusions ; Glossary ; Notes ; Bibliography ; Index

A zoologist, formerly a curator in the Museums of the Royal College of Surgeons, Caroline Grigson is now an honorary professor at the UCL Institute of Archaeology. The subjects of her numerous publications range from prehistoric animal husbandry to the study of natural history and its relationship to art in eighteenth century London.

Reviews for Menagerie: The History of Exotic Animals in England

Grigson is terrific at sleuthing down the remains of famous beasts. She also opens a few small windows onto national character ... [and] unearths some surprising historical gems. Who knew that the novelist Daniel Defoe went bankrupt trying to breed civet cats? Or that British hunts were once so desperate for foxes that they had to import them? Although private citizens would continue to keep menageries, this book ends with the demise of the collection at the Tower of London and the foundation of the London Zoo. It all makes the modern reader feel incredibly grateful that today we can enjoy exotic wildlife on our television screens, with the objects of our fascination in their natural habitats and no viewers gored. Helen Brown, The Daily Telegraph